Order Of Service

October 7, 2022October 7, 2022 / animar64 / Leave a comment

This is a story about Letta Bardwell and it’s been told in her obituary because there are 24 days left to Halloween and it’s a fitting place to lay it and her to rest.

Letta Bardwell, the daughter of the late Carmen Dorstand and Obadiah Dorstand was not born, she was spawned by the forces of darkness at an abandoned asylum for the criminally insane called Morin Creekside on November 1st, 1910.

Her beloved parents summoned her from the morgue in a ritual involving human sacrifice- and after calling her forward on several failed occasions they were successful at 12:01 on All Souls Day.

Letta was an active member of the Girl Scouts of America where she excelled in archery, sewing and cooking. As a result of her early training with the Girl Scouts Letta became the prime suspect in several unsolved murder cases involving cannibalism, grave robbing and assaults involving high speed projectiles and fire.

She was also a gifted artist and a talented writer and traveled all around the world, but after losing her right eye and suffering burns and a serioius chest injury during a trip to Romania in 1960 in a fall, she gave up her travels and threw herself into volunteer work in our community- where she gave help and comfort to our socieities less fortunate and tortured souls.

Her life will be remembered with reverence by her children- Cesya, Theresina and Mattias who’s whereabouts to this day are unknown but as per her last words, she called out to them and without a doubt they will return to the town where she brought them into this world, piece by piece.

Letta was proceeded in death by her husband ( four times to be exact ) Galen Bardwell, by her sister in law Julia Morin and her husband Parker, whose untimely deaths by attack by persons and animal unknown at the Open Grave Traveling Sideshow has been the inspiration of several horror movies since the tragedy in 1948.

Letta’s parents left this world shortly after she turned 16, but no one knows where they went. It’s assumed they went back to the Asylum and have been in residence there, off and on, over the years

ORDER OF SERVICE

Processional and Viewing Led By Reverand Imset

Hymn RIng Around The Rosie

Scripture- Passages from The Egptian Book of The Dead

Words of Comfort- Cold Case Detective Hamlen Widner

Acknowlegments Staff of Leaning Birches Mortuary

Recessional

Interment

Trumaine Cemetery

Gertrude Abercrombie
Self-Portrait
1939

RDP THURSDAY: OBITUARY

Poor Little Prince

October 7, 2022 / animar64 / Leave a comment

“Death is a mystery, and burial is a secret.”
― Stephen King, Pet Sematary

PET SEMATARY, from Paramount Pictures.

103 years before Stephen King’s book about a Pet Sematary created in the town of Ludlow, Maine was printed there was an honest to goodness Pet Cemetery in England.

The Hyde Park pet cemetery (originally the London Hyde Park Dog Cemetery and advertised as The Secret Pet Cemetery of Hyde Park) was established sometime in 1880 and was the final resting place for two cats, three monkeys and a number of birds. Topper, a fox terrier belonging to the park’s Metropolitan Police station was also buried in the cemetery. William Petre, 13th Baron Petre sent a dog for burial at the park and promised to attend the ceremony but died overnight, allegedly of grief for his animal.

However the majority of the deceased buried at the Hyde Park Cemetery are dogs.

471 headstones are known in the cemetery and many are marked with burial dates of these beloved pets. Only five headstones are marked with dates in the 1880s, 255 with the 1890s, 70 with the 1900s and only 23 with later dates. The 1976 burial was the only one carried out after the 1950s- I wonder if it was a cat and if it’s name was Church ( who in King’s book was named after Winston Churchill so it’s possible- slow wink -being that this burial took place in England.)

I learned that pet cemeteries at this time were considered a German custom and that eventually they fell out of fashion. From what I understand there is now a drive to bury pets along side their owners now- which in my opinion is long over due. I don’t care about tradition or decorum.

The sad fact is life goes on and a lot of people stop visiting their loved one’s graves as the years go on ( and there is NOTHING wrong with that ) so why not save a space for a pet?

It only seems right and in a way, oddly comforting to have this reunion in death.

Now let’s step back into the world of the living.

Enclosed at the end of this post are some photos from the Hyde Park cemetery- a quiet little memorial park that is no longer open to the public except for the occasional tour and I have to wonder if I would ever take that tour and if I did would this passage from Pet Semetary pop into my head as I walked among the graves of our most cherished companions.

It probably would, because if I can creep myself out at a cemetery I always do- I think it’s fun.

“Don’t go beyond, no matter how much you feel you need to, Doctor. The barrier was not made to be broken. Remember this: there is more power here than you know. It is old and always restless. Remember.”
― Stephen King, Pet Sematary